


Five Parallel Universes of Cook and Archie

by gliese581



Category: American Idol RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-10-18
Updated: 2011-10-18
Packaged: 2017-10-24 18:16:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 10,120
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/266436
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gliese581/pseuds/gliese581
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>5 lives David Cook and David Archuleta live in parallel universes to our own. (No cats were harmed during this production.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A Prince and His Knight

If there was one thing David truly hated about being a prince, it would have to be swordsmanship training. The deadly blades felt foreign in his hands and no matter how much effort he put into the act, the skill stubbornly refused to improve. If anything, the more he practiced with his instructors, the worse his sword handling skills became.

He knew the nobility whispered about his failures behind closed doors. _"It is because we have a toothless prince that our enemies are emboldened to attack our lands,"_ they would say. _"What kind of King will such a weakling make? My nephew, who is half his age, would best him in the field of battle."_

Even David knew he wasn't the perfect, or even a desirable, heir to the throne. The only person who believed in his abilities was Cook. He would always say that the nobility knew of the _idea_ of combat but knew nothing of combat itself and a Great King was one who ruled the kingdom with compassion, not military prowess. _"People such as myself, who have given our souls to you and your father, should be the ones to fight in your name."_

That memory stung as he stumbled among the injured and the dying guardsmen in the throne room. Some were too weak to speak, others wouldn't stop shouting for help, and still others called out for their mother. They were here because of him, because these men had pledged their lives to protect him.

David had to push those thoughts aside as more of the injured were brought into the last fortified chamber in the castle. He knew how to bandage and care for injuries and he was determined to put those skills to use. If he couldn't fight, he'd heal.

David had his mind focused on tightening the bandage on one of the wounded and he didn't notice anyone was approaching him until a heavy hand grasped his shoulder. The injured guardsman croaked out a strangled "captain?" and David immediately knew who the owner of the hand was.

"We must discuss a pressing matter, my Prince." David heard Cook laugh, jest, and instruct, but he had never heard the hard steel in his voice before. David motioned Brooke, one of the kitchen maids, to care for his patient and followed Cook into a small room where they could talk in some privacy.

"Your father has decreed that you are to flee this castle before all escape from this place is lost." Cook was caked with mud and a red substance David didn't want to identify. The normally pristine breastplate had a large dent across its dull surface. "Quickly, put these on." David looked down at something pushing at his stomach and found a dark tunic and wool trousers.

David looked up and tried to protest. "And what of the injured in the chamber outside? Am I to run like a coward while they are left to the mercy of our enemies?"

Cook ignored him and began shedding his armor and undressing. The once uninjured skin covering Cook's thick, muscled arms was crisscrossed with shallow cuts. The older man used the discarded fabric to scrub off some of the caked mud from his face. The prince had to look away when Cook threw the soiled tunic to one side and untied his trousers before pulled the dirty fabric off of his body.

The prince trudged on as Cook grabbed clean trousers from the floor and pulled them on in a rush. "I will not abandon them. What kind of future King would I be?"

Huffing in barely concealed frustration, Cook took a hold of David's rich silk tunic and ripped the material off of his back. David caught himself from screaming when a cold hand grabbed his bare hip. "You will be no one's King if you are dead. This is not a game we play in the dead of night; I will not be as gentle as I am for such nightly pursuits. Quickly, we don't have much time." Cook quickly pulled on a brown tunic and strapped his sheathed sword onto his back.

David tightened his jaw in anger, but reluctantly began changing into the clothing he was given. The fabric was itchy on skin usually accustomed to finer silks, but David didn't complain. Cook noticed that he was scratching his skin, but gave a small smile instead of an irate glare.

"You will not be alone." Cook stepped towards him and wrapped David in his strong body. All David could smell was sweat and dirt, but he felt calmer in the embrace. "I will be with you, David." The older man kissed David on the forehead and gave him one last squeeze.

David tried to ignore the high-pitched whispering and low murmuring as he followed Cook through the throng of the injured and those tending to them. Brooke and Carly met him by the barred doors with a sack and a small money pouch. They both hugged him despite knowing his departure under such circumstances was an unmistakable sign of the coming end. "Be safe, David." Those words were the last David would ever remember hearing from them.

If the makeshift sick room was bad, David wasn't prepared for what lie beyond the thick double doors. The air was thick with the smell of the dead and the sound of fighting down in the courtyard. The immense gardens he loved were trampled beyond recognition and full of dead guardsmen. David shivered as he heard Cook draw his sword.

Cook signaled him to stay silent as he tightly grabbed David's hand and led the prince down a maze of corridors. It showed how much David trusted his knight when he gave nary a sound when Cook pulled him into an alcove in the corridor wall. The unmistakable sight of Simon of Cowell's men, in their blood red armor and dripping swords, walked across the corridor, barely missing them. Cook waited until the men were gone before they continued towards the stables.

The stables were guarded, so Cook made David hide behind a hay bale as he snuck up on the guards. As Cook fought, David could see why Cook was Captain of the Royal Guards despite only being five summers older in age. He was in complete control of his sword as he shot forward, rolled out of range of a counterattack, and struck his opponents. It was impressive to watch. Cook was already pulling himself up onto the saddle as the last guard doubled over from a deep wound on his stomach.

David quickly scrambled up from his hiding place and joined Cook when the knight motioned for him. Cook helped him climb onto the war horse's back and grabbed a hold of the reigns. The knight muttered a low "hold on tight" and they galloped out of stable like an arrow from a taut longbow.

Cook maneuvered the steed through the throng of fighting, dodging swords and shields as they galloped on. David heard shouts of anger as they left the attacking army in their dust. Some members of the sieging army's rearguard chased after them as Cook took them down towards the smoldering low town.

"David, look behind us and tell me how many are following us!" David leaned out to the right and his eyes widened immediately as an arrow shot towards them. Just as he was about to tell Cook, David heard the knight grunt in pain as the arrowhead pierced his thick shoulder. Despite the injury, Cook reigning in the horse and kept them from tumbling off the horse.

David had to watch where he placed his body as he sat up to avoid jostling the arrow. It didn't look like the arrow cut into any major arteries, but the tunic covering the protruding arrowhead just above Cook's chest was starting to absorb the blood rolling out of the wound.

"Cook, we have to stop! You can't ride like this!" The knight ignored him and pushed the horse to gallop faster. Another arrow flew by their heads and David flinched away in shock. Behind them, David could make out a group of archers readying to fire another salvo.

The horse screeched when an arrow ripped through one of its strong hind legs and, despite Cook's best efforts, they tumbled to the ground in a heap. David rolled to sit up and found the muscled leg of an uninjured horse towering over him. Cook groaned in pain behind him.

"We don't have time to rest!" David was surprised when Cook let out a pained laugh and shook his head as he sat up.

"We need to buy time if the prince is to evade those archers." David scrambled to his feet as Cook unsheathed his sword and used it to pull himself up to his feet. "Johns will serve well, David. Take care of him for me, Johns." As David tried to protest, Cook pulled him close for a hard kiss and pushed him onto Johns' horse.

When Johns hesitated, Cook yelled a terse, "go!" and stood alone to face the archers charging at them on horseback.

Not hesitating now, Johns turned them around and they galloped down the cobblestone road. Johns ignored David's pleas and demands to go back. Tears clouded David's eyes as he saw Cook charge at his opponents with his sword held high. The knight's sword met the armor of one enemy and Cook wretched the man off of his horse.

Despite his skill, David watched in horror as Cook suddenly stilled in his attack and fell to his knees. At the distance David was from Cook, he couldn't see how hurt the knight was, but all doubt of the outcome faded when one of the horsemen drove a sword straight through Cook's chest and he crumbled to the ground.

Through his screams, David's heart knew one thing and one thing only, he would train to become the warrior the nobility doubted he could be. He would call on every favor his family had, gather an army surpassing Cowell's own, and take back his birthright. Then, when he had Simon of Cowell brought before him, David would make the man suffer a thousand-fold the pain he was suffering now.

So was born Great King David, the Warrior King. _Long live the King!_


	2. Postcards from Paradise

The sun was blinding as Cook opened his eyes when he heard the unmistakable sound of a screeching tomcat, otherwise known as William Adam Cook. "PAPAAA!"

Dave barely got to his feet when Billy careened into him. He let out a low "oof" when Billy made contact with his stomach. Billy screamed in delight - the boy really had a set of lungs on him - as Cook lifted his son up by the armpits and swung him around in a circle. Billy's laughter turned to giggles when Cook turned the child upside down and tickled his exposed tummy. Cook had heard the Foo Fighters _live_ , but there was nothing more precious and beautiful than Billy's laughter. Well, that is other than listening to Billy calling him "papa" and calling Archie "daddy".

As if on cue, Archie jogged up to where Cook was tickling Billy, with his board tucked under one arm. The sun made Archie's skin a deeper shade of gold than it really was. Together with his lean, but strong, muscles and dark smiling eyes, Archie was the definition of sexy as hell.

Even after a decade of being together, Cook couldn't help but think, hungrily, _so perfect_ and _that's all mine_. Granted, Dave would still think those exact thoughts even if the other man was much less muscled and his midsection was much wider. Archie was all _his_.

Billy yelled out an excited "daddy!" and demanded to be let down as Archie got closer to them. Cook complied with the incessant demands and put his son's feet firmly back on the toasty beach sand. Billy immediately charged his other parent with abandon and Archie had to drop his surfboard to catch the excited boy.

David resettled Billy in his arms and walked closer to Cook with a warm smile. "Did you tell papa about how good you can paddle now?" Having surfers as both parents meant Billy loved the water and Archie was just starting to teach his son how to surf.

"Really Bills?" The little boy eagerly bobbed his head up and down in confirmation of his paddling ability. "That calls for a celebration! Who wants ice cream?"

Archie cringed when Billy let out an earsplitting shout of "me, papa!" right into his ear. Dave sent the other man an apologetic look but Archie just smiled.

"You can have ice cream _after_ dinner, buddy." Billy pouted up at Archie, but even he knew it was a lost cause. One wobbly look from Billy had Archie postponing nap time, reading an extra story before bedtime, and sneaking in an extra surfing lesson, but food and nutrition were the only subjects Archie refused to budge on.

"That reminds me, mom called me earlier." Archie perked up at the mere mention of Beth. "She wanted to know why 'my darling grandson hasn't visited his doting grandmother yet' and she wants to see us at that new seafood place for dinner at seven."

Archie frowned down at his waterproof watch before he looked up and shot Cook a _look_. The man meaningfully lowered his gaze to the child in his arms and mouthed one word, _bath_. Cook stopped short - uh oh, his brain helpfully supplied. For a boy who loved being in the water, Billy had an unfounded hatred of baths.

"Hey buddy, you wanna help papa take things to the car while daddy brings the boards?" Usually, a tired out Billy was a Billy that was easier to bathe and dress.

Billy, unaware of the deception, jumped down on the ground and ran after Cook with an excited yell.

Cook gave Billy an armful of rolled up beach towels to carry and picked up the heavier beach umbrella and icebox. Putting a guiding hand on Billy's shoulder, Dave led his son towards the parked Audi. On the way, Billy loudly regaled him about Archie's surfing and how excited he was to "surf like daddy!" someday. Cook smiled down at his son, fondly, even as a twinge struck his knee.

Archie caught up to them, carrying two adult-size boards and a smaller child-size board, as Cook was buckling Billy into his booster-seat. Cook helped David secure the surfboards on the roof rack and climbed into the driver's side of the Q5.

"We gotta go to the beach house and get ready to see grandma, okay buddy?" Dave looked up at the rearview mirror to see Billy nod.

"k papa!"

The "beach house" was nothing more than a two-bedroom cabin with a single bathroom and a large living area, but it made a suitable basecamp for vacations. It was the first house Cook and Archie had bought together, back when Billy hadn't even been a stray thought in their minds, and they'd hung onto the property even after they bought a much larger house near Palo Alto.

It was a scramble to get clean and change into fresh clothes for dinner. Archie bathed Billy and Cook helped the boy fit into a clean pair of cargo shorts and his best polo shirt. By the time Billy stopped squirming enough for Cook to put his feet into his shoes, Archie was finished with the shower and Dave ran to the bathroom to take his own. It was hectic and crazy, but by the end, they were all clean, dressed, and ready to meet Beth.

As was his life now, the car ride to the restaurant was filled with Billy singing along to Archie's iPod. When they arrived downtown at the restaurant, the place was so crowded that Cook had to lift Billy into his arms to keep the boy from getting separated from him. They managed to somehow make it through the crowd to find Beth and Andrew waiting for them at a table; how they accomplished such a feat when there were people lining up to make a reservation, neither David could figure out.

Beth bypassed Cook completely and extracted the excited five-year-old from her son's arms. Archie laughed at Cook's hurt expression and bumped fists with Andrew. Cook socked his little brother in the arm in retaliation and they all settled down around the table. Dave's palms were already getting sweaty, and it wasn't from the oppressive California heat.  
The drinks arrived quickly, a glass of red wine for Beth, lemonade for Billy, and ice-cold beers for everyone else. "So, how have things been?"

Andrew's eyes twinkled with glee as he piped in after his mother. "Yeah, anything worth celebrating happen recently?"

Cook leveled a pointed look at his mother and discretely kicked Drew in the shin under the table. Archie, for his part, just looked confused. Dave was glad for small favors. "You call us every day, ma. If there was anything to talk about, you'd know it by now. Why don't you tell grandma about your surfing, buddy?"

Dutifully, Billy excitedly began retelling every detail about his day to the table and Cook ran a finger over the fold of paper in his front pocket. It'd have to wait until desert.

As expected, the food was great, the atmosphere was alight with excited talking, and the company was unbeatable. Archie didn't even say anything about the pieces of roasted squash that conveniently 'fell out' of Billy's plate. But Dave's stomach felt like it was full of cement.

As they ambled outside after their meal, which Cook made sure he paid for, Billy let out an excited yell of "Ice cream!" Dave actually had to hand it to the little guy, he hadn't asked about ice cream all through dinner.

"Sweet, we'll go with you!" Dave wanted to strangle his brother.

Now, Archie had his 'something's going on and I want to know' look on his face. Dave plastered on his best 'who, me?" look when Archie turned to look at him. By the shape of Archie's mouth, Cook knew the other man didn't buy it for a second.

David seemed to be placated by an offer of pistachio ice cream. They ambled down the colorful boardwalk with their deserts, pointing out familiar landmarks from their own childhood to Billy and, in Drew's case, telling the boy embarrassing stories about his parents. When Drew finished a lurid tale of Cook, a fake snake, and a tourist, Dave gently lowered a drowsy Billy into Beth's capable arms and motioned Archie to follow him.

Cook pulled David into an empty section of the boardwalk overlooking the ocean. His hands were sweating again as he cleared his throat. "Um… Uh, do you remember when I busted my knee at that surfing tournament and my sponsors bailed on me?"

How could Archie forget? He'd been _on the beach_ when Dave got caught in some rocks and the sea wrenched the man's knee into an unnatural angle. It was David who first fought the wild ocean to reach his injured boyfriend in the resulting chaos. David had _punched_ Cook's manager in the face when the man started talking about sponsorship at the foot of the hospital bed. All of Archie nightmares started with the sound of the tide and Dave's pained scream.

"Well, they sent me a letter last week asking if I had time to talk. Something about a demo and speaking gig for the summer."

Archie let out a careful breath, a sure sign he didn't know what to think. "Well you should take it. I mean we're not really strapped for money and you always said –"

"I told them to go to hell. And never call back."

David stared dumbly at Cook in response. The tension abruptly left his shoulders and Archie closed his mouth.

Dave carefully pulled out the paper from his pant pocket and held it in his hands. "They knew about you and Billy and the fuckers wanted me to 'refrain from revealing politically divisive personal stories' during the job. They said bringing Billy was out of the question so I hung up."

Dave unrolled the letter and extracted something that was tucked inside. Cook ripped up the paper and tossed it out into the sea. "But they reminded me of something I took for granted. When everything was going to hell, you stuck with me. When the doctors said I wouldn't walk again, you never gave up on me. You pushed me to go back to school and graduate. We have a house, jobs we love, and _Billy_ because of you, Archie. You stuck with me through everything."

David opened his mouth to talk but Dave trudged on. He had to finish before he inevitably lost his nerve.

"You and Billy are the best things to happen to me. I wouldn't give either of you up even if it meant I could surf professionally again. I know we said we didn't need anything to prove how much we love each other, but I want everything for us. I want everyone to know what you mean to me. David James Archuleta –" Dave dropped to one knee and presented a platinum band to David, "will you marry me?"

Archie paused for a millisecond before he yanked Dave to his feet and pulled the taller man into a fierce hug. All Dave could hear was the ocean and Archie's stuttered breathing. After a beat, Cook heard the muffled answer.

"Yes."


	3. Demons Run (When a Good Man Goes to War)

From what Cook heard through the grapevine, the academy made him out to be some kind of living legend. Every instructor wanted their students to emulate him and every student wanted to be him. They told stories about his unwavering obedience to the Order, his prowess in all forms of combat, and his uncanny ability to find and exploit weaknesses in all enemies of the Order.

To Cook, that was a prime example of the kind of bullshit that he hated most; twisting the truth to suit a need. He wasn't some kind of hero or whatever the fuck the Order made him out to be. He was a stone-cold killer if someone gave him a good enough reason to become one, pure and simple. He had been obedient to his overlords a decade ago, but that loyalty ended the day they flattened an entire city to prove a point. At least they got the rest mostly right. He did use any and all means necessary to defeat his enemies, but it was now the Order that suffered his wrath.

Case in point, he was currently in the process of snapping an Order sentry's neck. The man struggled to get free, but Cook had decades of experience and he easily held on until he heard a sharp _snap_. Cook calmly dropped the dead sentry on the ground and resumed cutting into the metal screen that covered the ventilation shaft.

He needed to work quickly. He had three hours, at most, before someone came to investigate why the surface was silent. The mission was risky and dangerous – too many variables were out of Cook's hands – but he had no choice. Archie was down in the bunker and Cook needed to get to him.

Cook finally finished cutting through the steel mesh and roughly pulled it off. Hollywood would have had him kick the mush for dramatic effect, but the last thing Cook needed was the metal to slam onto the bottom of the shaft and alert everyone and their mom that he was repelling down.

By his calculations, Cook knew he had to travel ten stories straight down before he reached the closest access point, but that was easier said than done. Trying to swing towards a hole that was barely the size of a grown child, while precariously hanging over a fifty story drop, wasn't a cakewalk. Cook barely managed to grasp a metal pipe near the opening and clambered inside a ventilation tube.

The duct was smaller than the blueprints made them out to be, but Cook was able to squeeze in by dragging his duffle bag instead of having it slung over his shoulder. After crawling for what felt like hours, the duct grew marginally wider and Cook came upon his destination; a two story drop onto a metal catwalk, which was itself overlooking a massive server farm.

Cook leaned back on his haunches and unzipped his duffle. He grabbed a silencer and screwed it on the HK45 that was strapped to his thigh. Cook then strapped his Mk-17 SCAR-H to his ballistic vest and made sure his safety glasses were secure. He unsheathed his knife from its position on his shoulder and jumped.

The drop wasn't the highest he'd jumped, but it still jarred his bones when he landed right on his mark and crashed onto an unsuspecting guard. Cook viciously drove his knife into the base of the man's skull and severed the brainstem. The two other men on the catwalk raised their rifles towards him, but Cook shot first with his HK45. The .45ACP rounds slammed into both men and they went down in a heap. The roar of the room's cooling system easily muffled the sound of his intrusion.

Cook slipped into the server monitoring station and neutralized the guards and techs working in the room with his silenced HK45. The armed guards put up some resistance, but a bullet in between the eyes put a stop to that. He shoved one of the slumped bodies off of the workstation, plugged in a slim USB into an empty slot, and began typing quickly. Cook needed to cover his approach to the most heavily guarded section of the bunker, and controlling the automated security system was just such a cover.

When he was done, Cook touched the side of his glasses to activate them. Real-time surveillance footage and a digital map flickered to life on the polycarbonate. Satisfied, Cook left the room and dropped down on the sever farm's floor.

David quickly made his way down the aisles of loudly humming machines towards a door leading out into a hallway. The well-lit corridor was empty except for a lone security camera watching from the far elevator door. Cook left the camera alone as he walked down to its location. With the entire security system under his control, he could have done a jig in front of the unblinking eye without anyone knowing any better.

The elevator chimed as the metal doors slid open and David punched in the override code he pulled off one of the dead guards into a small keypad. The doors closed and began descending deeper into the facility. Cook holstered his handgun and grabbed a couple grenades from his bag as the elevator plunged towards the research wing. The elite guards waiting at the end of the elevator ride would know the moment one of their own fell, so stealth was pointless. On the bright side, the modified security system would take care of the thousands of regular troops in the levels above him.

David activated the three grenades he was holding as the elevator began to slow and he threw them past the opening doors. The resulting succession of explosions was deafening and David stepped into the confusion with his rifle raised. He'd caught the highly trained guards completely by surprise and he quickly put them down with his Mk-17. Right on cue, the lights suddenly turned dark red and an alarm began ringing.

Following the map projected onto his glasses, Cook immediately turned west and ran down the corridor with his weapon raised. Resistance was light and David was surprised at the relative ease of his assault. He stopped just short of the bend in the corridor and unsheathed his combat knife. The surveillance footage showed six heavily armed men guarding the door at the end of the hallway. When he heard boots running towards him, David raised his arm and swung the knife out into the dark hallway.

A lone guard ran right into the outstretched knife and impaled himself in the stomach. Cook used the knife as leverage to turn the guard 180 degrees and pull the man in front of him as a shield. A hail of bullets struck the immobile guard when they stepped out into the hallway. David dropped the bleeding human shield and returned the favor with his rifle. The men went down one by one, but a round grazed Cook's side.

David ignored the pain and switched out the spent magazine for a new one. He chambered the first cartridge and walked through the door leading into the research wing. He wouldn't have access to surveillance footage beyond the door, but he was almost through most of the opposition and Cook couldn't give up; not when he was so close.

Cook immediately took a running leap towards a low wall and stayed down as ten rifles opened up. When the fire paused for a second, David used the opportunity to pop up from his crouch and fire back. Most of the guards dove behind cover, but two guards took five hits each and slumped down against the wall.

The guards had numbers, but Cook had better skills than they did and he slowly whittled them down until only five men remained. David checked to make sure he had enough cartridges in the magazine and took a breath as his cover was peppered by bullets. He mentally counted down the number of cartridges the guards had remaining in their current magazine and, when his count reached 0, rolled away from his shelter.

Cook advanced towards the guards and took out one as the man tried to duck behind a marble pillar. When he heard the unmistakable sound of the men reloading, David pressed himself against a pillar in the center of the room. He quickly reloaded his own rifle and unholstered the handgun from his thigh.

When he heard the quiet shuffle of the guards headed towards him, David threw his glasses across the marble floor and stepped out from behind the pillar. Distracted by the glasses, the guards were unable to react fast enough when he opened fire. They all went down under the withering fire.

David took a breath before he reloaded his SCAR-H with his last remaining magazine and secured it to his chest. He stepped into the lone hallway and advanced through offices, labs, and operating rooms. Resistance was mostly sporadic and made up of a few lightly armed scientists – novices who Cook put down with ease.

The security console next to the blast door leading into the inner labs and observation rooms lit green when David dragged a wounded scientist towards its biometrics scanner. Cook pushed the moaning woman away and put a final bullet through her heart when he saw that her badge proudly displayed "ARCHULETA – Lead Experimental Physician" in big letters. No one who laid a hand on Archie was innocent or safe from his harsh retribution.

The bright inner rooms were filled with huddled scientists and techs who whimpered when Cook closed the blast doors. Cook made his way to the huddled mass and switched out his magazine. Some of the techs started crying, Cook had only one thought in his brain. _Did Archie sob like you when you people pumped him full of drugs and cut him open to see inside?_

"David. Where is he?"

Some of the scientists looked away in scorn at the demand. David shot a tech in the stomach in response. The mass of people stared up at him in shock. David didn't even raise an eyebrow.

"I'll ask again. Where is David?"

"The Subject is in Observation Room 2! It's right down the hall!" A few other scientists hissed and narrowed their eyes at the scientist who spoke up.

"What is the access code?"

Another scientist yelled out an alphanumeric series. "WST186934!"

Cook turned on his heels and marched down the hallway towards a metal door labeled "OBSERVATION." He entered the large room and found a windowed cell with Archie's form inside. Archie was unconscious on a hospital bed, which was a small blessing. There were twenty tubes attached to Archie's ghost-like skin and a large angry incision ran down his thin chest and concave stomach.

David felt sick to his stomach at the sight. Before his abduction just a week before, Archie's body had been filled out with fat and compact muscle. The attached heart monitor let out a sharp beep and David quickly jerked back into action. He approached the digital lock and punched in the access code he'd been given.

Instead of unlocking, a cheerful voice suddenly came over the speaker. "Sanitation and purging protocol initiated. Cleaning event will commence 15 minutes after confirmation from main terminal. Please stand back."

David's heart stopped cold at the announcement. His hands curled into fists tight enough to draw blood and he ran back to the scientists. Cook had to duck and roll to his right when a tech swung a fire extinguisher at him as he stepped into the larger room. Nerves already on edge, he shot and killed the tech and advanced on the cowering mob. He tackled a scientist who was running towards a console and dragged him away by the neck.

"If you don't tell me how to stop it, I'll rip you apart piece by piece." The man shook his head from his position pinned against a wall.

Cook grabbed the scientist's head and violently slammed it against the concrete wall in retaliation. The man was dazed, but Cook put a bullet in one of the man's kneecap as an extra incentive. The scientist was shocked back into lucidity and his scream rang through the large room.

"Override. Now."

The man was sobbing but still refused to answer. Cook calmly pulverized the other kneecap in response. The man let out another chocked scream and his body was shaking with pain. One of the other scientists stood and tried to reason with him

"Do you have any idea of the scientific importance the Subject represents? He carries genetic information that can be used to cure diseases and eradicate human suffering. You have to understand that we cannot let such a discovery fall into the wrong hands."

Cook knew how to listen beyond just the words coming out of the man's mouth. What the man really meant was that if _they_ couldn't control Archie's abilities or find out why he was special, no one could. Cook was always amazed how easily seemingly normal people could rationalize human experimentation and torture.

"His name is Archie." David dropped the blubbering man on the cold floor.

"The subject isn't even human! It's a _thing_ to be studied! Why do you –" The man's speech was cut short when Cook lifted the man off the ground by his lab coat.

"He's more human than you'll ever be. He doesn't deserve to be cut open and studied as your science project." The scientist struggled to get free, but David's grip was a vice.

David abruptly dropped the man on his feet and motioned everyone else to stand up. "In the breakroom, now!" The twenty or so people filed into the room, dragging in the dying with them. David shot the computer and telephone before sealing them inside.

Archie was still unconscious when David returned to the observation rooms. The scientists were obviously unwilling to cooperate and the information he would get from forcing them to talk could very well kill Archie. With that in mind, Cook did the only thing he could think of. He leveled his handgun at the glass partition and fired off three bullets.

The top layer of the reinforced glass fractured, but didn't fall away. Cook stepped back and unloaded the 10-round magazine at the glass. When that barely cracked the glass, Cook raised his SCAR-H and fired off a few rounds. Each burst of higher velocity rifle rounds shattered a man-sized layer of glass, but David had to stop when a stray bullet entered the room and slammed into the heart monitor beside Archie's bed.

Too dangerous to use bullets, Cook started hitting the glass with the rifle's stock. Getting more frustrated by the minute, David just threw the rifle on the floor and used his body to break into the cell. Like a dog after a bone, Cook ignored the pain of each impact and the bleeding cuts developing on his skin as the wall slowly gave way.

Cook stopped for a second to catch his breath and inspect his progress. There were a pair of deep fissures in the glass and he knew one good body-slam would get him into the cell. David stepped back a few meters and took off towards the forming hole. The impact wrenched his shoulder out of its socket, but Cook didn't even care because the glass gave way and he careened into the room, falling to his knees on the floor.

Scrambling to his feet, Cook approached Archie like a man bearing witness to a miracle beyond compare.

The man gently removed each needle and covered each resulting wound with a thick cotton ball. Some of the thicker needles were pushed deep into the comatose man's spine and Cook had to exercise extreme caution. Archie twitched in his deathly slumber as the David covered the bleeding wound.

With all of the needles removed, Cook gathered the wraithlike man into his arms and slipped out of the glass prison. Everything he had done to get here, the favors he used, and the promises he made, fled his mind now that Archie was in his arms.

As Cook passed the imprisoned scientists, Archie's dark eyes slid open and he whispered one phrase. "Cook, I knew you'd come find me."

"I will always find you Archie."


	4. You Can (Change My Life)

The sun was barely rising over the horizon when Archie shuffled out onto the balcony with a steaming mug of coffee. Goose bumps rose to meet the tendrils of cold morning air wrapping themselves around his exposed arms. David took a cautious sip of the dark liquid in his mug as he learning over the railing and watched, entranced, as the rays of sun lit the city around him in an otherworldly glow.

After he took his final sip of coffee, David let out a sigh and stepped back into the warm apartment. He deposited the empty cup in the sink with another deep sigh. Another day here meant another day away from home. Starting Day 311 wasn't any easier than starting Day 1 when he wasn't home. Home was a warm smile and crinkled eyes. Home was wherever Cook was.

The worn hoodie he shrugging over his shoulder smelled like allspice and the once-dark lettering across the front was illegible. David stuffed his laptop into his messenger bag and grabbed his keys from near the door. He took one last look around the tiny apartment, making sure the stove was turned off (David really didn't want a repeat of Day 85), before he shut off the lights and stepped out into carpeted hallway. Yet another sigh fell from his lips.

If David had looked closer at the opposite end of the hall, he would have seen the shadow lurking there.

The noises of the city coming to life were drowned out by Archie's iPod and the subway as it rumbled beneath his feet. The towering gray buildings passed by the window.

Archie hitched his bag higher on his shoulder as he climbed down to the front of the large lecture hall. A few students yawned and everyone was clutching onto a cup of coffee like a lifeline. David mumbled good morning when the students in the front row waved at him as he passed them. He sluggishly hooked up his laptop with the overhead projector and lowered the screen over the array of whiteboards.

Archie waited a few minutes after the bell rang to let the stragglers stumble in. Just as David suspected, less than a third of the enrolled students bothered to show up. "I know some of you because I teach three of the afternoon tutorial sections, but if you don't know me, I'm David Archuleta and I'm a grad student in the department."

The students in the first row were David's so they nodded along to his spiel. The other thirty just stared dully at something above Archie's right shoulder.

"Randy, um Professor Jackson, is off to a convention this weekend so I'll be taking over for him today." A few hands immediately shot up. "But the other TAs and I are hoping to get the second midterm scores to you by next Friday." The hands all fell. "Well, let's get started."

Archie dimmed the lights and started his lecture. "As you've seen on Monday, there are cases where binary search trees do not give you a better asymptotic bound than order 'n'."

Most of the students were barely paying attention as he reached the end of his presentation. The coffee was wearing off and the thirty or so students in the hall were becoming restless. Archie ignored the urge to sigh in defeat. "So, by just adding some conditions and 'rotation' functions to a regular binary tree implementation, an AVL tree guarantees that the asymptotic bound is order log 'n'. That's it for today guys."

A herd of undergrads rumbled out of the room and left David to pack his bags and trudge out of the lecture hall. The hall was crowded by swarming bodies and it was a struggle to fight through the tide. Day 311 wasn't starting out to be a good day.

Archie almost jumped out of his skin when a hand clapped him on the shoulder. He turned to find Brooke smiling down at him.

"I thought I told you to not to come into this building this weekend." Brooke was smiling, but Archie felt an undercurrent of seriousness in her voice. "Go home and rest, David. _Before you go crazy._ "

"But –"

Brooke frowned and pointed to the double doors. Feeling like a scolded child, David left the building.

Behind Brooke, a male head popped out from behind a wall. Brooke frowned at the disembodied head and stalked towards it. "You so owe me, buddy."

"I really appreciate it."

The subway was half-empty when Archie took it back to his apartment. Most of the people on the train didn't look like the zombies he'd ridden with in the morning and the train was filled with excited voices. David turned up his iPod.

Archie toed off his sneakers and dropped his bag on the kitchen table as he walked past. He was pulling off his hoodie as he stumbled into his bedroom, so David didn't notice anything was wrong until he threw the sweater on his bed.

Staring back at him was a giant _teddy bear_. David stood, shocked, as he stared back. He stood there for a good five minutes before he noticed a message taped to the bear's chest.

_42 65 6C 76 65 64 65 72 65 20 43 61 73 74 6C 65  
31 3A 30 30  
– 43 6F 6F 6B –_

When David was in middle school, he used to exchange notes with Cook in code. He knew the bear was from his boyfriend the moment he saw "43 6F 6F 6B" which spelled Cook. If Archie remembered right, the series above the name translated to "Belvedere Castle" and "1:00". The only place David knew with that name was in Central Park and it was already 12:30.

David was sweating by the time he climbed off of his bike at the base of the stone tower. His watch said it was exactly 1:00 when he examined it after he reached the observation deck. David was about to give up and head back home when he noticed there was another jumble of letters and numbers on the castle's announcement board.

_44 65 6C 61 63 6F 72 74 65 20 54 68 65 61 74 65 72  
4C 69 73 74 65 6E  
– 43 6F 6F 6B –_

Or, "Delacorte Theater" and "Listen" in human speech.

David ran back out of the castle and headed towards the outdoor amphitheater near Belvedere Castle. Under normal circumstances, David would have felt stupid running around the park with people staring and sweat discoloring the collar of his white t-shirt, but he couldn't find a reason to care right then. _This was Cook!_

He sunk into one of the green plastic seats and fought to catch his breath. The stage was empty, but a very familiar voice rumbled out from a pair of portable speakers on the stage. "Mr. Archuleta, aren't you glad you're not cooped up in your cubicle on such a nice day? You're almost there, Archie. 42 65 74 68 65 73 64 61. 46 6F 75 6E 74 61 69 6E."

Bethesda Fountain.

David ran back to get his bike, the fountain was too far to leave his bicycle at the castle. Archie dodged runners and tourists as he weaved his way down to Bethesda Terrace. If he was being honest, this treasure hunt _Cook_ , his boyfriend who was a thousand miles from him, was sending him on was the most fun he'd had in years. It was like being a child again.

The brick walkway around the fountain was packed with people and Archie had to hold onto his bike as he walked closer to the water. When David didn't find any notes taped to the masonry, he frowned and looked around him to see if he missed something. He almost missed a child's toy boat leisurely sailing towards him.

The words "Turn Around!" were painted in big dark letters on the side of the boat. David did so, and stopped dead.

Standing there was _Cook_. David's jaw dropped and he stood there staring at Cook until the other man put a hand in front of his face. David wordlessly took the outstretched hand and Cook pulled him closer.

"Cook? How?"

The older man smiled. "Well, I planned, bribed, and cajoled. And here we are. I missed you, talking on Skype wasn't the same."

"I'm glad you came, Cook." Archie pulled Cook into a tight hug. "But call me next time, you idiot."

"Well, that's because this was supposed to be a surprise." Dave reached into his pocket and removed a silver band from his pocket. David's heart sped up and began thumping in his chest at the sight.

"David, wanna start a family with me and Dublin?"

Archie clenched Dave's leather jacket and paused. He still had two year of grad school left and Cook's graphic design studio was in California. Neither of them had the choice or luxury of moving across the country for the other until either situation changed. But this was _Cook_.

As if knowing what Archie was thinking, Cook spoke up gently. "We don't have to worry about logistics just yet, Arch. Let's just do what feels right."

"Just say yes already, mate!"

David jumped at the familiar voice and his face turned red with embarrassment. Cook groaned and his shoulders shook with laughter. Archie really shouldn't be surprised to learn Cook brought their friends with him.

Archie heard Carly hit Johns upside the head and furiously whispered at the man. "Behave. God, you're embarrassing."

Cook ignored Johns' cry of "Ouch, woman!" and turned hopeful eyes on Archie. The younger man pretended to think about it.

"Well, if _Johns_ thinks I should, why not? Let's get married."

It was Cook's turn to stare dumbly at Archie. The shocked expression shifted into a look of sheer joy. "Did you just make a joke, David James Archuleta?"

Instead of answering, Archie pulled Cook down for a kiss.

Much later, "Wait, what about our names?"


	5. 0100010001000001001010110100010001000011: DA+DC

David ducked behind a high wall when he heard the unmistakable grunts of a scouting party heading his way. He froze as they slowly passed his hiding spot, barely even breathing inside his helmet and holding his SMG close to his chest. He hoped the fucking _things_ couldn't hear his racing heart. Those bastards literally tore through anyone they came across, be they military or civilian, and David knew stealth was the only advantage he had.

As he leaned against the crumbling barrier to stealthily peek out at the enemy patrol, HIGHCOM had said to keep an eye out, the wall suddenly shifted and began to collapse under his gloved hand. Before he even heard the patrol turn towards his position as one entity, David made a break for it and ran down the ruined streets as fast as his feet could carry him.

The angry roar of the scouting party's leader echoed behind him, and he heard the sounds of the group breaking up to give chase. As if to clarify that the roar was _not_ as a friendly hello, bolts of focused energy shot by his head. David refused to look back and he ducked into a side alley, _away_ from the makeshift firebase his platoon was operating from. The alleyway was clear of obstructions as far as he could see and David bolted down the road as fast as he could.

The giant primate-like creatures chasing him were bigger, stronger, and had more powerful weapons, but they were slow and their weapons had a hard time hitting a moving target beyond their short range. David felt hope well up in his chest as his pursuers started to fall behind. He just needed to evade them long enough until they tired and fell back. After that, he just needed to wait for sunup and then use the maze of sewage tunnels to get back to camp.

His plan hit a bit of a snag when one of the hairy brutes popped out in front of him. Training, or just plain shock, had David mindlessly raising his half-empty SMG and unloading the rest of his magazine in the creature's chest. The creature's metal armor shattered under the hail of bullets and it grunted in pain before going down. Without stopping to snag the creature's weapon as was protocol, HIGHCOM was _really_ into getting their hands on the alien technology, David continued running.

After passing through an uncountable number of skeletal buildings, David was exhausted and needed to find a place to lie low for the night. Looking around, he spotted a relatively intact commercial building and thought, _perfect_. The Marine sat down on his butt just inside the structure and tried to breathe. His watch said he needed to wait six more hours before he could return to the firebase without bringing along uninvited guests.

David froze in place when he heard the back door swing open and something heavy lumbering in. The instinct to fight dissolved into defeat a split-second later. He was out of ammunition, had somehow lost his combat knife in the pursuit, and the building lacked any usable weapon – he was as helpless as a newborn calf.

No, scratch that, a newborn calf had a mother for protection.

He knew the moment he was found when he heard the safety of a gun disengage. David's eyes focused on the faded photograph taped inside his helmet as he waited for the… Wait, the Conclave didn't _have_ safeties on their weapons. David turned his head towards the sound and found a fucking THEBAN staring down at him.

Well, David thought the THEBAN was looking at him. It was hard to tell with the thing's face hidden behind heavily tinted polycarbonate.

The THEBANs, or, according to the holonews, members of Special Operations Group THEBAN, were legends. They were the best-of-the-best and they never lost a battle to the Conclave. They felt no fear, were masters of combat, and put fear in the hearts of the Conclave. Or so HIGHCOM always said. David always thought they were like unicorns from pre-22nd Century folklore; claims of meeting one were dubious at best.

Everyone and their mom had theories of what the nearly seven-foot tall THEBANs were. _"I heard from my cousin who heard it from a friend whose boyfriend heard it from his squad buddies that they're actually robots disguised in armor. And like they can take out a 'clave supercarrier, easy."_ David ignored rumors as best he could, but Marines were worse than nosy old ladies when it came to gossip.

At that moment however, David really hoped the rumors were true. Maybe then, his ragtag group of survivors might actually be able to survive in this graveyard until rescue came.

"You maybe have a spare SMG mag with you?" The THEBAN clicked the safety on his (her? its?) DMR and shook its head in a negative. The heavily armored hulk suddenly turned its head towards the door and raised its rifle. David scrambled to his knees and peered out from behind a low counter to see why.

David couldn't see or hear anything other than a crow cawing from somewhere. He was about to think the THEBAN was just paranoid when it fired a single shot towards one of the taller structures across the cracked parking lot. David's jaw dropped when he saw a Conclave sniper tumble out the side of the building. As if that shot was a signal, a barrage of enemy fire hit the side of the building.

The THEBAN threw a pistol at Cook, who barely caught it with a nod and rolled towards the front window. David stayed down as the hulk fired off a couple rounds and another barrage hit the storefront. When the enemy fire let up, Cook popped up and let loose with the pistol. He managed to nail three rounds on an approaching creature's thick neck and the thing went down. There was no time to celebrate the shot as a grenade sailed into the room and landed at David's feet.

Even before David could react, the THEBAN dropped down, grabbed the rapidly blinking explosive, and threw it back out of the window. An explosion of pure energy rocked the building as the grenade detonated a millisecond later. Even before the smoke settled, the black-clad hulk fired off another slew of rounds and silenced the battle.

David took a breath of recycled air to calm his nerves. "Fuck. We better move. My firebase is nearby, but my unit won't be able to let us through until the sun comes up."

The THEBAN nodded and took a cautious step out of the building, watching for movement. Cook followed closely behind his new companion as it policed an energy rifle and some ammunition for the weapon from the dead brutes. The hulk surprised him by handing its DMR and five full magazines to David. Cook was about to thank the THEBAN but it was already heading down the road and David ran to catch up.

They found an intact, but hidden, alcove in between two crumbling buildings and ducked inside. It was barely big enough for both of them to stretch their legs, but it had a bit of light coming in from a hole near the top.

David cleared off some debris and plunked down on his ass, unlocking his helmet on the way. He pulled the full face helmet up over his sweaty head and took a deep breath. It felt good to feel fresh air against his skin and have it fill his lungs.

"Hey, I didn't catch your name back there. Mine's David Cook."

The THEBAN didn't answer and looked down at its feet. The hulk gently sat down and began examining the alien weapon it was holding.

Shrugging at the brushoff, David reached into a compartment in his full body armor and pulled out a protein bar. He hadn't eaten for hours, which made the usually unappetizing concoction worth eating. The moment he bit into the dark bar, the taste of an ash-like unidentifiable 'protein' and sugar flooded David's mouth. It was an effort not to gag, much less swallow.

David caught the THEBAN looking at the picture taped to the inside of his discarded helmet in the corner of his eye. Cook put the half-eaten protein bar on the floor before reaching in and gently pulling the photo out. The hulk next to the opening turned its head to look out into the desolate streets at the action.

"You gonna lecture me about having personal effects in the field? Well, don't bother. This is the reason I'm still here." Every Marine Cook knew of had some kind of good luck charm; the faded photo of two young boys was his token.

The THEBAN's head turned away from the window and faced David. The Marine turned the photograph so his companion could see.

"That's me when I was seven -" David pointed at smiling child at the left "- and that's Archie," he pointed to the other smiling child. "Well, that _was_ Archie." He had no idea why he was telling a complete stranger, an emotionless THEBAN no less, about the story behind the picture.

"We were best friends since we could both crawl. We did everything together." Cook had to pause as his hands shook of their own accord. "We took this picture when we went fishing to the largest lake on our colony. Blue-Spring has these huge-ass fish called Felixfish that kinda taste like Earth catfish and we caught three of 'em that day." As he told the story, the THEBAN was silently watching and as impassive as ever.

"Man, just thinking 'bout my mama's blackened Felixfish is making me hungry." His companion looked pointedly at the discarded bar. Cook made a face at it. "Those things might be edible for you, but that shit isn't food."

"But yeah. Archie..." David was a Marine. He wasn't supposed to choke up in any situation, much less talking about his childhood. "Archie got real sick a year after that vacation. The doctors said some bullshit about a sudden onset degenerative disorder.

The whole thing was FUBAR. No one went from perfectly healthy to wasting away in a blink of an eye. The doctors tried to pin it on some 'environmental factors' but David, who had been attached to Archie at the hip, hadn't been sick at all. He hated that no one listened to him back then. David could have helped, but no one had given him the chance.

"We were both ten when he died." Even after twenty years, Cook's anger still turned into pure devastation at the mention of the death. "Archie fought tooth-and-nail for two years but his body couldn't take it. Fuck." David scrubbed the wetness out of his eyes.

Cook saw the THEBAN look away again. "I loved him. I didn't know it then, but now I know that I loved him. He was everything to me. He was my soulmate." David had never, ever told anyone that he loved Archie. No, he loves Archie. The passive tense would mean he stopped loving, which wasn't true.

He turned the photo to examine it. "That's why I joined up with the 'Suicide Jumpers' after basic. I have nothing to lose be dying; I'm already dead. I have been since that day, since the nanosecond Archie did." David tried to grin at the THEBAN as he continued. "I'll take as many of those bastards with me, though. They fucking disintegrated Archie's grave when their fleet turned Blue-Spring into ball of molten rock. I'll make them pay for that."

The THEBAN's hands stilled and its covered head jerked up at the mention of his unit. A deep male voice warbled from the armored suit. "Get some rest, Staff Sergeant. I'll take first watch." The hulk stood and lumbered away from the makeshift shelter.

 _Well I'll be_ , David thought. _He can talk._

Cook heard the THEBAN mutter a low "Take a rest, Benton. Patch me into New Nairobi's surveillance network." The Marine shrugged and slip onto his back to rest. He tried to stay awake, but his eyelids felt like titanium ship armor. David fell asleep in no time.

When David woke up from his sleep, the sun was already climbing high in the sky and the THEBAN was nowhere in sight. Where he expected the other man, he found additional human weapons, ammunition, and incongruously, a note in block script.

ORBITAL BOMBARDMENT OF CITY TO START TODAY. MOVE OUT BY 13:00.   
SEE YOU ON THE OTHER SIDE.  
DESTROY AFTER READING.

0100010001000001001010110100010001000011

"Archie? Archie!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Because no one will get the meaning behind the binary sequence and how Cook knows he spent the night with Archie unless they know something about computers, here is an explanation.
> 
> A computer represents numbers, symbols, letters, etc. as a sequence of ones and zeros (binary). There's a standardization called UTF-8 that uses hexadecimal numbers to further simplify the representation for humans.
> 
> Essentially:  
> 0100010001000001001010110100010001000011
> 
> Split into pieces with 8 bits (numbers) each. (I made the generalization that we're working in 8-bit representation, fellow nerds.)
> 
> 01000100 01000001 00101011 01000100 01000011
> 
> Convert to hex
> 
> 44 41 2B 44 43
> 
> Convert to symbols using UTF-8
> 
> DA+DC
> 
> Which is short for
> 
> David Archuleta + David Cook


End file.
